Atomic Structure

Learning Objectives:
Do I know ..
•The structure of an atom?
•About the relative size of the nucleus?
•That atoms of a given element have the same
number of protons in the nucleus?
•The meaning of the terms ‘atomic number’ and
‘mass number’?
Starter
Think, Pair and Share…
True or False…?
◦ Atoms cannot be split up into anything
smaller.
◦ Atoms are solid objects and nothing can
pass through them.
◦ There are millions of different kinds of
atoms.
◦ No-one has ever seen an atom.
Starter
Think, Pair and Share…
True or False…?
◦ Atoms cannot be split up into anything
smaller. False!
◦ Atoms are solid objects and nothing can
pass through them. False!
◦ There are millions of different kinds of
atoms. False!
◦ No-one has ever seen an atom.
False!
 What is an atom made of?
All matter is made up of particles called atoms.
These atoms are made up of even simpler sub-
atomic particles.
These are called protons, electrons, and neutrons.
Challenge
Draw the diagram to the left. Can
you add these labels?
•Nucleus
•Proton
•Neutron
•Electron shells
•Electron
 What is an atom made of?
At the centre of an atom is a positive nucleus. If the atom was
the size of the O2 arena, the nucleus would be the size of a
table tennis ball!
The nucleus is made up of positive protons, and neutral
neutrons.
The nucleus is surrounded by electrons.
These electrons are arranged in layers, or shells, sometimes
these shells are called energy levels.
Electron
Nucleus

Electron Shells
Proton

Neutron
 What is an atom made of?
Complete your table using the information
about sub-atomic particles around the
room.
Particle Relative Charge Relative Mass Where in the
atom is it found?

Proton +1 1 In the nucleus

Neutron 0 1 In the nucleus

Electron -1 Almost 0 (actually In shells

0.0005) surrounding the
nucleus
Atomic number and mass number
So far scientists have identified 118
different types of atom.
This means there are 118 different
elements.
Each element has a fixed number of protons
in its nucleus.
Look at Lithium (Li) on your Periodic Table
(page 120 of your planner).
Atomic number and mass number
Lithium looks like this on the table, this is known
as the ‘nuclear symbol.’

This is the mass number.

The mass number of an We know that the
atom is the total number 7 ‘Li’ is the

Li
of protons and neutrons in
the nucleus. chemical symbol
for lithium, but
3 what do those
This is the atomic number
for lithium. This number numbers mean?
tells us how many protons
are in the nucleus. No
other element has the
same atomic number as
lithium.
Atomic number and mass number
You can use the nuclear symbol for an atom to
work out the number of protons and neutrons in
the nucleus. The nuclear symbol for Phosphorus
(P) is shown below. How many protons and
neutrons are in its nucleus?

31

15
P
Atomic number and mass number
The atomic number is 15.
This is the number of protons in
31 the nucleus.

15
P The mass number is 31.
This is the total number of
protons and neutrons in the
nucleus.
So, 31 – 15 = 16.
Test Yourself
1. Using the nuclear symbols shown for
these atoms, write down the numbers of
protons and neutrons in the nucleus of
each atom. 16 23

8
O 11
Na
2. An atom of potassium (K), has 19
protons and 20 neutrons in its nucleus.
Write down the nuclear symbol for this
atom.
Test Yourself
Swap your work with the person sitting
next to you.
1. Oxygen (O) has 8 protons and 8
neutrons. Sodium (Na) has 11 protons,
and 12 neutrons.
2. The nuclear symbol for potassium
should look like this: 39
19
K
 Challenge Question
Neutrons have no charge,
but they play an
important role in the
nucleus.

Discuss with the person

next to you what their
role might be. Use the
diagram to the right to
give you some ideas.
Summary
Copy and complete this sentence about the
structure of atoms.

positive
Atoms contain a nucleus with a ________
charge, surrounded by _________
electrons in
shells. The size of the nucleus is much
smaller than the overall size of the
________
atom.
Home Learning
Use the key words sheet you have been
given to create a poster for a display on
atomic structure. Your poster must include
all the key words and their definitions.